The invention relates to a convertible vehicle with a vehicle roof which is movable between a closed position in which it covers an interior vehicle space and an open position in which the vehicle roof is deposited in a storage compartment, which is provided with a cover including an operating mechanism for pivoting the cover open while moving it toward the rear of the vehicle.
DE 199 48 746 A1 discloses a vehicle roof wherein, for the transfer of the roof from the closed to the open position, the front roof part is first moved, by means of a telescopic guide structure, below the rear roof part whereupon, in a subsequent step, the front and the rear roof parts are moved together as a packet into the trunk of the vehicle. For depositing the roof top packet, the trunk lid covering the trunk is pivoted open about a pivot axis which is disposed adjacent the vehicle interior whereby an opening is provided between the trunk lid and the vehicle body through which the roof parts can be introduced into the trunk. When the roof parts have been deposited, the trunk lid can again be closed.
The pivot axis of the trunk lid is disposed at the end of the trunk next to the vehicle interior. The lid is opened from the rear of the vehicle for depositing the roof and also for loading and unloading the trunk.
In order to ensure a sufficiently large access space between the front edge of the trunk lid adjacent the interior of the vehicle and the vehicle body for moving the roof into, and out of, the trunk, the front edge of the trunk lid must be displaced to the rear; otherwise, the opening between the front edge of the trunk lid and the vehicle body is insufficient for a collision-free movement of the vehicle roof into, or out of, the trunk. This requires either a trunk lid, which is relatively short in the longitudinal vehicle direction or long support arms between the pivot axis at the vehicle body and the rear lid. In the first case, that is, when the trunk lid is narrow, only a small part of the trunk space can be covered by the rear lid so that also the access to the trunk is relatively small when the trunk lid is opened. In the second casexe2x80x94with long support armsxe2x80x94the rear lid opens in a wide path of movement and therefore requires a large unobstructed space.
Another convertible vehicle is known from EP 949 103 A1, which discloses a rear trunk lid, which can be pivoted open for depositing the vehicle roof and which can also be moved toward the rear of the vehicle when being pivoted open. The trunk lid operating mechanism comprises a main arm by way of which the trunk lid is pivotally supported on the vehicle body and which is operated by a hydraulic operating element. At its end facing the vehicle interior, the trunk lid is supported by a slide track. When the main support arm is pivoted upwardly by the hydraulic operating element, the end of the trunk adjacent the vehicle interior slides backward in the track and, at the same time, is pivoted open by the pivot movement of the main arm. In this way, an open access area is provided between the trunk lid and the vehicle interior through which the vehicle roof can be moved either to be deposited in the storage compartment or to be removed therefrom.
In its open position, however, the trunk lid extends far back beyond the rear end of the vehicle because of its linear displacement toward the rear so that the trunk lid may collide with an object that may be present behind the vehicle.
DE 198 00 156 A1 discloses a rear trunk lid covering a storage compartment for a vehicle roof which is connected to the vehicle body by a four-link operating mechanism. For opening the storage compartment, the trunk lid is raised at its end adjacent the vehicle interior. Since a four-link operating mechanism provides not only for a pivot movement but also for a longitudinal displacement of the lid, the rear end of the lid may move beyond the rear contour of the vehicle.
Although this can be prevented by mounting the lid operating mechanism to the vehicle body near the vehicle passenger compartment, such an arrangement would limit the access opening to the roof storage compartment behind the passenger compartment.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a convertible vehicle, whose vehicle roof can be deposited in a storage compartment, with relatively inexpensive design features, wherein, during opening and closing of the roof, all components of the vehicle and its roof remain within the confinement of the vehicle body contour.
In a convertible vehicle including a roof which is movable between a closed position, in which the roof covers an interior vehicle space, and an open position, in which the roof is deposited in a storage compartment behind the passenger compartment of the vehicle, that is covered by a rear lid, an operating mechanism for opening and closing the rear lid is provided which includes front and rear pivot arms pivotally mounted to the vehicle body, a coupling arm pivotally connected to the pivot arms and first and second links, each of which has one end pivotally connected to the rear lid and the first link is pivotally connected with its other end to the coupling arm while the second link forms an extension of the rear pivot arm.
With this arrangement, in which the trunk lid is pivotally connected to the vehicle body by an operating linkage which includes a coupling arm, pivot arms and links, which are pivotally connected to the vehicle body, and, respectively, to the trunk lid and all are connected to the coupling arm by pivot joints, the trunk lid operating mechanism includes only pivot joints. In contrast to the state of the art, no slide track is needed for the operation of the trunk lid.
The rear trunk lid operating mechanism including exclusively links, arms, pivot joints and a coupling arm permits, even without guide tracks, a wide opening of the rear lid wherein, in its open position, the rear lid extends upwardly at a steep angle. In its open position, the rear lid is disposed within the contour of the vehicle, that is, it does not extend beyond the rear end of the vehicle although it is moved toward the rear. The access opening generated between the front edge of the rear lid and the passenger compartment is therefore sufficient to move the vehicle roof through the access opening into the roof storage compartment without colliding with other parts.
Since one of the pivot links of the trunk lid is an integral part of one of the pivot arms requiring only a single pivot joint at the coupling arm, the trunk operating mechanism consists of a seven-joint operating mechanism, that is, it includes seven joints, namely two joints each at the vehicle body and the trunk lid and three joints at the coupling arm interconnecting the links and arms. The two outer joints of the coupling arm are connected respectively, to a vehicle support arm and a trunk lid link and the intermediate joint is pivotally connected to the arm extending between the trunk lid and the vehicle body. In the embodiment with a seven joint operating mechanism, only one of the pivot arms needs to be actuated at the vehicle body side for a predetermined kinematic opening and closing movement of the rear trunk lid.
The transfer movement to a steeply open position with a sufficiently large access opening can be enhanced by a special selection of the geometric relationship of the arms and links and the coupling arm. Preferably, the link and the arm connected to the trunk lid are connected to the trunk lid at a relatively small distance from each other whereas the connecting points of the two arms two arms mounted on the vehicle body are pivotally supported at a significantly larger distance from each other so that spacing between the body-side pivot joints is much greater, that is at least five times greater than the spacing of the trunk lid joints. Also, the pivot joints on the coupling arm are so arranged that the outer pivot joint, which is linked to the vehicle body, has a much greater distance from the intermediate joint than the outer coupling arm joint which is linked to the trunk lid. It may furthermore be advantageous if the pivot arm, which is actuated by an operating member for the automatic raising and lowering of the trunk lid, is the arm extending to the lid and is significantly longer than the second vehicle body pivot arm, in order to provide for a good lever action for the initiation of the pivot movement of the linkage. The steep orientation of the trunk lid in its open position may be enhanced by a bent in the coupling arm wherein the bend-over point is disposed in the area of the intermediate common pivot joint and the end of the coupling arm is bent over toward the trunk lid.
The rear lid may at the same time be a trunk lid, which covers the vehicle trunk as well as the roof storage compartment and which is opened in the same way for access to the vehicle roof storage compartment and to the trunk space.
If the rear lid is at the same time the trunk lid, the roof storage compartment is part of the trunk space so that the trunk space is substantially enlarged when the vehicle roof is in a closed position.
The invention will become more readily apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof on the basis of the accompanying drawings.